Test of Trust
by Elillierose
Summary: An ingredient excursion in new territory goes slightly awry when Zoro and Sanji find themselves smack in the middle of an ill-placed trap. With both injured, they have no choice but to swallow their pride and work together to get out. Zosan Day one of MarimoCookWeek Prompt:Teamwork
1. An Inconvenient Trap

**Beta read by: Markofthemoros and Kagero-assassin (Tumblr)**

* * *

"Are you sure you know where you're going?" Sanji asked from a few feet back. His hands were stuffed in his pockets, cigarette hanging loosely between his lips.

Zoro hummed to himself as he sliced through another thicket. They had been walking for over an hour now, and he didn't want to admit that the chances of him getting them even more lost were rising drastically with each step. "Would you rather take the lead then?" he questioned and shot a glare over his shoulder. "Last I remember, it was your bright idea to even come out here, Mister 'I wanna look for ingredients'."

Sanji scoffed. "Well, excuse me, if you wanna complain so much then you don't have to eat what I cook from now on."

The swordsman ignored that last comment, instead using his bubbling frustration in a more useful way...unlike a certain someone. He drew his sword back and easily slashed through some more leafy obstacles.

The more he cut, the more the chef looked around and the more his eye twitched. "Hey, moron," he finally muttered as he placed a hand on the other's shoulder. "How long are you going to trim the hedges before you realize this is obviously the wrong way?" He stepped to stand beside the other man, choosing not to hear the annoyed huff he let out. "You're just taking us deeper into this mess." He folded his arms over his chest and turned to face Zoro, awaiting a response.

However, the man stood for a few moments, as if really thinking about it. He looked to his right, taking in just how much more thicket they would have to go through in order to get to the other side. Come to really consider it, he didn't recall getting here to be quite that much of a hassle…

"Tch, you show the way then, since you're so smart," he muttered, sheathing his sword and waving a hand.

The blond rolled his eyes. "Well, that's going to be more challenging now, because _someone_ was so bent on going this way. Do you have any idea just how far we've been walking? There's not telling which way you have us facing now!"

"Well, you should have said something earlier, Shithead!"

"I did!"

Zoro let out a low, irritated growl and folded his arms tightly over his chest. He mumbled incoherently to himself. "Just get moving already."

Plucking what was left of his cigarette and stomping it out, Sanji turned on his heel and began heading where they'd just come from. On the bright side, there was a neat little path now, so the risk of them veering was limited. But...looking down it, like a tunnel, it stretched on for quite some distance. They'd be at this for a while…

For the most part, there was little talking between them, and what there was were complaints, mostly coming from the blond. It didn't help that it was well into the middle of the day now and temperatures were rising at a ridiculous rate. Both of them frequently wiped sweat from their foreheads. Hands slapped the back of necks to keep the insects at bay. Of course, it did little to deter their growing numbers.

"If we went the right way to begin with, we wouldn't be getting eaten alive right now…" Sanji muttered, slapped his palm against the side of his neck.

"Stop bitching and keep walking, you're wasting energy by yapping," Zoro shot back, unable to hide the amusement from his voice. This carried on for almost two hours, back and forth, neither wanting to take full responsibility for their current predicament. Almost two hours until they finally reached the end of their leafy tunnel. Here, without a better idea of where to go, Sanji just decided that heading straight was the best option. When in doubt, go in a straight line...or that was his method. It normally worked.

Zoro followed without question. What could he say anyway; it wasn't as if he had any better idea of where they were going. He glanced around, not recognizing any of their surroundings. A few more steps, and he pushed to reach a hand out to stop the cook's movements. Something wasn't right...but he didn't realize it until he already felt the ground slightly shift beneath his step.

"H-Hey wai-" he called out, only for his mouth to clamp back shut as the ground practically disintegrated from underneath him.

Sanji tried to grab for something, but his fingers grazed dirt and accomplished nothing aside from pulled more of the earth into the opening ground. Next to him, he felt the other man shift, trying to grasp whatever he could as well. But, it was no use, they were both falling - far. Their eyes squeezed shut as they fell.

It all happened so fast. One second, they were suspended in the air, and the next their bodies were striking hard surface. The moment the blond hit the ground, he gasped sharply. He could subtly make out the dull 'snap' as pain radiated up and down his left leg. There was second noise that matched, but he felt it nowhere else as far as he could tell. For a few seconds, all was silent as dust and dirt settled and the both of them tried to get a grasp on what had just happened.

"A-Are you alright?" the swordsman asked through clenched teeth.

The blond coughed lightly before slowly propping himself up on his elbows. Even that small movement caused fire to flare up in the appendage again.

 _Shit._

He bared his teeth and tried to ignore it, instead he looked over to the other to see him already sitting up and clutching his right arm. Lines of pain were streaking across his forehead. Trying not to move too much, Sanji nodded once. "Yeah. I think so." He inwardly cringed at the tightness in his tone. No way the idiot would have missed it.

And sure enough, "Liar."

Sanji scoffed under his breath and pulled himself until he was sitting up, sucking in sharply as he did so. One of his hands instinctively reached for the limb, and his eyes widened slightly at the feeling. Something was very clearly wrong, and he wasn't liking the wet and warm feeling he felt soaked into his pants.

"What about you?" he asked, getting the focus onto something else. He looked again to the man's arm. "Is it broken?"

Zoro went quiet for a moment. There was no use trying to deny it. "I think so," he sighed. It didn't matter, that fact that he knew he wouldn't be using it was enough reason to just admit it. Sanji would notice. With a deep breath, he got to his feet, lower arm loose at his side. He flinched only slightly. Looking up, the swordsman let out a low and irritated groan. They were in a pit...at least thirty feet down.

"Dammit…" he muttered, looking back over to the blond. "Guess we're gonna have to climb out of here. Think you can do that?"

The cook didn't reply, didn't even try to move. That alone had alarms going off in the other's head.

"Hey...you hear me?" he asked getting a sharp look from the chef. "I said get u-"

"I heard you!" Sanji snapped, hand coming away from his leg finally, revealing the red stain that covered it. He ignored the look in Zoro's eyes as he dragged himself, hissing with every inch his leg moved. Fingers digging into the dirt wall, he eventually managed to get standing on his good leg, out of breath and sweating.

Now it was Zoro's turn. "Is it broken?"

The blond didn't reply, in fact, he seemed to flat out ignore the question. "So, we climbing out of here then? Gonna be difficult with you with one working arm," he mumbled, hopping once to regain his balance.

"And it won't be easy with one working leg," Zoro shot back.

Sanji forced a smirk. "Yeah, but I function better with one leg than you with a fully functioning body. So, worry about yourself getting out of here." His words were near laughable when he couldn't even take his hands off the side of the hole without hopping a few times and almost falling over.

"Go on then, why don't you show me how it's done then." Zoro leaned his back on against the other side and nodded for the other to go ahead.

He didn't think it were possible for the man's face to pale further, but somehow it did. He swallowed thickly and turned towards the dirt. "Alright, fine." Sanji dug both sets of fingers as deeply into the earth as possible. Holding tightly, he pulled himself up and quickly kicked with his good leg and lodged his foot into the dirt as well. Like this, he slowly got himself a good few feet off the ground. But, this method was quickly draining him of what little energy he had left. Every time he pulled himself up, his useless leg, with nothing else to do, would swing, striking the earth and causing more pain to jolt through it.

One more step, and his leg struck the surface again. As it did, he breathed in sharply as a white flash encompassed his vision for a second. Next thing he knew, he was falling again. He closed his eyes, waiting for the impact to come.

"You didn't faint on me, did you?"

Slowly, Sanji pried his eyes open, just now noticing the hold he had around his waist and the fact that he never hit the ground.

"What happened?" Zoro asked. "I thought this would be no problem for you."

Sanji jerked himself out of the man's hold, only to nearly fall again. Luckily, a strong grasp on his upper arm kept him on his feet. "It's dirt, alright, it's not exactly a stable surface." Surprisingly, he didn't pull away from the hold on him, and Zoro was sure if he did, he'd be right back on the ground. From the slight daze in his stare, there was no doubt in the swordsman's mind that he really did almost pass out from his attempt.

It was settled, there was no way Sanji was getting out on his own, and with the pain that was clutching at his own arm, he was fully aware how difficult it would be for him. They had to figure something out. He lowered his head in thought, and there was only one solution that crossed his mind, but he was sure there was no way Sanji would agree to it. Hell, he wasn't even sure if he was ok with resorting to this…

But...what choice did they have? Wait here until someone passed by to help them?

He took a deep breath as he hoisted the cook up, eliciting a hiss. "I have an idea, he announced. "You're not gonna like it, I'm not either, but it's probably the best chance we have." Sanji looked at him curiously, waiting for this genius plan. "Both your arms work, right?" he asked. He got a single, firm nod. "And both my legs work, so…" He held his breath as he wrapped his arm tighter around Sanji, and in one motion, hefted the lithe from up until the man was sitting on his shoulders. "We have a full set of working limbs together."

"What the hell is this!?" the blond demanded. "What are you doing? I don't need a shitty ride to get out of here!"

Zoro breathed out slowly. "Stop complaining unless you can think of something better!"

Sanji could only growl lowly before jerking his head to the side.

"I can only hold onto one of your thighs, so try not to move too much or we'll both fall. And all you have to worry about is not losing your grip, got that? If either of us slips, we're both coming right back down, so don't fuck it up."

"I should be the one telling you that."

He took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds before huffing it back out. "Alright, let's give it a shot," Sanji said, taking half a second to pop his fingers. He felt the other nod with a quiet hum as he stepped closer to the dirt wall. The blond thrust his hands forward, burying his fingers deep, ensuring he had a good hold before giving the go ahead.

Sanji clenched his jaw as Zoro stepped up, his grip on the man's thigh tightened to keep him. The pain was still traveling up his leg in currents, but at least now it was mostly resting against the other's body. The blond glanced down, surprised to see they were actually off the ground. This may just work. It would be a slow and agonizing process, but there was a chance. Gritting their teeth and bearing the pain, the two of them made it a few more feet before Sanji stopped for a moment, head bowed.

"Damn." He was starting to get a little dizzy.

"Everything alright up there?" Zoro asked, noticing the slight increase in the other's breathing.

The cook breathed in deeply and held it, willing the light-headedness and nausea to subside. It took a few seconds longer than he would have liked for all of it to clear up. "Y-Yeah," he muttered. Before any more inquiries could be shot his way, he reached higher up and soon their pace was back to where it was. The higher they got, the more labored their breaths became until they were both nearly panting.

"Almost...there," Sanji called down, swallowing thickly as that same sick sensation started welling once more. He just prayed he'd manage not to throw up. He let out a sigh of relief when his fingers finally grasped the top of their earthy prison, and he pulled himself over the edge with a grunt, removing himself from Zoro's shoulders. But, the man still had a strong hold on his leg. With effort, the blond dragged himself across the ground whimpering as his bad leg was dragged as well. Slowly, the swordsman was hauled over the edge as well until they were both lying there, catching their breath and drenched in sweat.

Zoro had his eyes closed, only partly opening one when he heard the chef start to cough, a cough that quickly transitioned into what sounded like retching.

"Shit," Sanji mumbled, wiping his sleeve over his mouth. He dragged himself another foot, close enough to lean against the nearest tree. One look at his leg, and it was obviously broken. He already knew that, but seeing it now, there was no doubt to it. There was a stain, larger than it was, surrounding the injury, and he cringed knowing full well it was blood.

"You should let me take a look."

Closing his eyes, Sanji shakily dug a cigarette out of pocket. "It's fine," he said, lighting it. "Should you really be worrying about me when you're in the same position?"

Knitting his brows, Zoro got to his feet with ease. "Really? Looks like only one of us can still walk. And look at me, do you see any blood?"

The blond looked him up and down, searching, but he had to lower his gaze with a scoff. He turned his head to the side, trying to avoid the man's prying gaze. "Whatever, do what you want. Not sure what you can do about it anyway."

That was the closest thing he was going to get to permission, he supposed. Carefully, Zoro kneeled next to the cook. "I'm going to need to cut through your pants to get to it," he informed. Without giving the other a chance to protest, he continued. "Otherwise, I'm going to have to either roll the fabric up, which will hurt like hell. Or, you're going to have to remove the pants, which will hurt like hell."

Sanji instantly closed his mouth and folded his arms over his chest. There was a bit of mumbling, but nothing that could be made out.

'Good enough,' Zoro thought, unsheathing one of his swords. He placed the tip at the bottom of the fabric, and slowly, he began sliding the blade up, careful not to cut skin. He paused when he reached the injured area and slowed his pace even more. Wishing he were able to use both hands no to steady his slicing, he gripped the hilt harder. Eventually, he had the materiel cut all the way up to the knee.

"There we go," he muttered. His fingers hovered over one of the flaps of cloth. Even now, between the two seperate pieces, he could see crimson covering purple hues. "What the hell…" he muttered as he slowly peeled the fabric away. He repeated with the other side and tried desperately not to show any signs of disgust. Zoro was sure he could see a hint of white among the various colors. White which was in a place where it shouldn't have been. How the hell was he moving around as much as he was?

Sanji wasn't looking down, as if he already knew how bad the injury was. And he feared he already knew what would have to be done about it too.

Unfortunately, Zoro was there to voice those concerns. "You know we can't leave it like this, right?" he asked, looking from the mangled limb to the blond's paled features. "It's going to have to be set as soon as possible and bound to slow the bleeding.

Sanji took a deep breath. "I told you to do whatever you want," he mumbled around his cigarette right before a few ashes crumbled to the ground. The swordsman pressed his lips together at the unmistakable spark of fear in the oceanic orb. He tried to hide it behind a shield of defiance, as he always did. But, spending so much time so close to him, Zoro could see through every veil he tried to put up. He wasn't fooling anyone.

This was going to be tricky with one arm. He should probably take care of that first. "I need you to help me with something," he said as he struggled to remove his top and slice a couple strips away. He threw them to Sanji. "I need you to help tie my arm up to keep it out of the way."

The blond asked no questions and waved the swordsman closer. Within a few moments, he had Zoro's arm hanging in a makeshift sling. It wasn't the best, but it served its purpose for the time being.

"Now...it's your turn," he breathed out, dreading this almost as much as Sanji was, if not more. He returned to his spot next to the cook's legs; seeing the injury again made his skin crawl just as much as the first time had. First thing he had to do, he had to tie it off. With only one hand, it took a few minutes to get his bandanna untied and retied around Sanji's thigh, just above the knee. The latter flinched as it was tightened. "Sorry," he muttered. He wasn't sure why he had the need to apologize, especially when things were about to get far worse.

All was as prepared as it was going to get. Zoro just wished it could have been Chopper here instead of himself. As far as he knew, he could be doing this all wrong. "Ok," he said lowly, mostly to himself. Then, with his good hand hovering over the bone, "Tell me when you're ready."

Sanji still had his head turned to the side, eyes now closed. His knuckles were a ghostly white as his fingers dug craters into the dirt. "Just...do it already," he borderline pleaded.

Zoro nodded, despite the gesture being unseen as he slowly lowered his hand. The second his touch brushed the injury, Sanji hissed and his leg jolted. "I'll get this over with as quickly as I can," he promised, unsure if he'd actually be able to keep it or not. Holding his breath, he just went for it before either of them could think about it and change their minds. He pressed his palm against the bone, cringing at the sensation. He tried not to vomit as he felt it shift under his hand.

Just to make matters worse, the blond's screams were almost instantaneous. He wasn't sure he's ever heard the man make such a primal noise since he'd known him. He always did a fairly decent job of keeping his suffering to himself, but in that moment, it was purely unadulterated. After a couple seconds, the cries died down and Zoro felt the muscles relax under his touch.

It should have been worrying, but he was too busy thinking how thankful he was the man passed out. At least he could get this done without causing anymore pain. Either way, he still wanted to be done as quickly as he could for his own sake now. With a bit of force, he pushed the bone down, wincing and stifling a gag when he finally felt another shift. Shakily, he pulled his hand away, which was now covered in blood.

"Shit…"

Zoro released a stuttering breath, unable to tear his eyes away. Right, next...he needed to make a makeshift splint. The last thing he wanted was for things to come out of place again. He wasn't sure he could stomach doing this a second time.

Not wasting any time, he searched for the first couple of sturdy sticks he could find. It took nearly half an hour to do everything, but finally he had his bandanna wrapped tightly around the blond's leg and sticks. It was rough, that was for sure, but it would hold until they could get back to the ship. It would have to do. The only thing that worried him was the fact that Sanji stayed unconscious through all of this. His breathing was fine, pulse as well, at the very least.

As much as he wanted to wait for Sanji to wake up so he could make sure he was fine, the idea of staying so close to that hole made him uneasy. The main reason being, it wasn't natural, someone had to have set that there. It was a trap, a successful one at that. Whoever planted it clearly knew what they were doing.

Zoro took a deep breath and got back to his feet. "Alright, let's get goin'," he sighed. He had no idea how he was going to do this. No matter what, it was going to be uncomfortable for both. So, with no better option, he leaned and wrapped his arm around the cook's waist. Once more, he was relieved he was knocked out as his leg was dragged none too gently along the ground while he was hoisted up over the swordsman's shoulder. There was only a small whimper, but other than that, the man didn't make another sound.

Now, the main issue was...where the hell was he supposed to go from here? He stood there for a couple minutes, looking around and considering his options. There was only one way he knew _not_ to go. He tapped his foot; he was only wasting time standing there.

Inhaling deeply, he eventually just chose a direction and went with it. Better to wing it and have a chance of going the right way than to stand there for hours until the sun went down. Every step he took jostled his arm, causing an occasional wince, but he bore with it, it was nothing he couldn't handle. To be honest, he was more focused on making sure Sanji wasn't bounced around too much, as well as listening to his every breath, waiting for a hitch or some indication he was starting to come to.

Of course, there was no such luck, and the time was ticking by quickly. By the time the sky was dimming, Zoro was starting to grow exhausted and he still had no idea where they were. He needed a break, desperately.

Slowly huffing out, Zoro, as carefully as he could, eased Sanji off his shoulder and lied him on the ground. There was a low, almost inaudible groan as he did so. Looking closely, he could see a couple of the cook's fingers twitch and his face scrunch in discomfort. He dropped himself to the ground as he watched the man slowly come around. And slowly it was. The guy seemed to fight as hard as he could to stay unconscious, but the pain was busy pulling him out of his peaceful reverie.

One eye gradually opened blearily. He cleared his throat as familiarity slowly returned to him, all the memories of the last few hours flooded his head and he let out a small hiss. What little color was left drained from his face. His hand instinctively clutched at his thigh in a futile attempt to alleviate the torrents of agony. Swallowing thickly, he looked to Zoro.

"W-Where are we?" His mouth was unnaturally dry, causing him to almost choke on his own voice.

The swordsman lowered his gaze. "Still in the woods, but I got us away from the pit. Lucky there wasn't more waiting. That or we were fortunate enough not to find any more." His gaze wandered from the cook to his leg. "How is it holding up?"

"As well as you'd expect," Sanji replied honestly. He slowly carefully breathed out, as if doing so too harshly would cause unnecessary pain. "And you?" he questioned, nodding to the other's arm.

Zoro smirked with a light chuckle. "Better than you." He then glanced towards the sky, expression dropping with the lighting. "It's getting late," he muttered. "It's probably best we don't move around." He wasn't pleased by this, but running the risk of running to another trap in the middle of the night wasn't something he was very fond of.

From the looks of it, Sanji wasn't exactly thrilled either. But he didn't complain. He couldn't think of any reason to argue those points. If they were to fall in another of those things, he had his doubts of them getting out again. Slowly, he pulled himself a few feet, feeling the other's eyes on him the whole time, until he was able to prop himself up. He was breathless, nearly drenched in sweat by the time he was upright. And even though his struggles were painfully obvious, Zoro restrained himself from stepping in or offering help. Showing any sort of pity would have done nothing but frustrated the man further.

But every time the cook flinched, Zoro found himself doing the same. His hands curled at his sides.

"I should get a fire started," he muttered, getting to his feet. "Will you be alright here until I get back?"

Sanji flashed him a slight look of offence. "What do I look like to you? A charity case?" He let out a weary sigh and leaned his head back with a light 'thud'. "Yeah, I'll be fine. Just...for fuck's sake, don't get lost."

The swordsman offered him what he hoped was a determined smile. "Yeah, yeah, I'll be right back. And you, don't move. If you mess your leg up again, I'm not setting it another time."

The cook waved a dismissive hand and let it fall back next to him. "Trust me, I don't plan on it," he muttered, eyes closed again. His fingers still clutched at the fabric of his pants. Subtle trembles wracked them. "Hurry back…" He heard a small hum in reply. Sanji sat there and listened to the steps until they eventually disappeared. He finally allowed a held back whimper to slip out as he ran his free hand down his face. It was slick with sweat.

His good leg was bouncing impatiently. He hated this, hated having to wait here, unable to do a damn thing, while Zoro was out there having to do everything. The feeling of uselessness was already starting to bear down on his shoulders. The blond looked down to his leg, just now noticing the bandanna wrapped tightly around it. Blood had already stained through its surface.

It was so quiet out there, only sounds other than his breathing was the occasional chirp of a bird. He tired to keep his breathing as quiet as possible. Every sound, every snap of a stick or rustle of a leaf had his head jerking in another direction. Why the hell was he so paranoid? This was so unlike him.

He took a steadying breath, cringing when it brought a wave of dizziness. That was right, he'd lost a decent amount of blood. He just wasn't thinking straight. He mentally slapped himself.

"Dammit," he muttered, straightening up.

Sanji stayed still and silent for a couple minutes more, willing himself not to look in every direction every two seconds. He was doing fairly well until a particularly loud 'snap' caught his attention, forcing him to whip his head around, eyes wide.

"Zoro?" he called out, heart hammering in his ears. "Hey!"

No response. His pulse started to slow back down, relief flooding back over him. Releasing a shaky breath, the blond went to lean back again, but another 'crackle' of leaves being crushed had his attention right back. There was no mistake about it, that was definitely a footstep. He swallowed nervously, placing one hand on the tree. Eyes scanning the area, he slowly, painfully tried to pull himself up. Perhaps it was the new rush of fear running through him, but the fire in his leg was momentarily spared from him, dulling enough for him to get standing on his other leg.

Sanji hopped a couple times to keep his balance. Now there were more steps, one after another. "Alright...you can come out now!" he shouted, voice echoing. "I know you're there, so you can stop with the sneaking around before I find you myself and kick your ass!" He prayed the weariness in his voice didn't shine through as much as he felt it did.

He was panting, relying on the tree for support. His breath caught when the walking came closer, from his right.

"S-Sorry, I didn't mean to frighten anyone." The voice was husky, coming from an obviously aged source. Sanji looked towards it, and cautiously, someone stepped from behind another tree. His worn appearance matched that of his voice. The elderly man's hands were raised. "I was checking my traps, you see, and one was set off but there were no animals...I got a little suspicious and tracked the prints here."

"So...that was yours?" Sanji asked with a slight smirk.

The man nodded as his gaze dropped, landing on the blond's leg. "I think it's safe to assume you're the one who fell in that thing?" he asked with a hint of guilt. With that, Sanji relaxed a bit, seeing no threat or intentions of harm in that dulled stare.

"Yeah, damn thing nearly killed us!" Sanji snapped. He didn't mean to, but fuck, his leg was killing him. He was getting light-headed again and had to sit back down. He struggled to do so, but held up a hand when the elderly man started making his way over. "I don't need any help," he assured, hissing and biting his bottom lip until he was back in his original position. "Who're you?" he asked through clenched teeth.

The other twiddled his thumbs in front of him, head downcast. "M'name's Dodge. Gotta say, haven't seen others around these parts in quite some time. Got no idea why anyone would wanna come here, there ain't nothin' for miles. Shoot, the whole dang island is empty aside from myself and the local wildlife."

Sanji laughed dryly. "Yeah, well, funny you say that. 'Cuz we happen to be here for some ingredients for restocking." He winced again. It was getting more difficult to hide his discomfort. But, he was getting tired and his body was listening to him less.

Dodge began to come closer again, and this time no amount of protesting stopped him. "That leg looks bad…" he commented, getting an uninterested grunt in return. "Mind if I have a look?"

"Yes, I do."

The elder curled his lips over his teeth and nodded. "I have some things that might help with the pain, if you'd like, my hut is just a fe-"

"Who the hell are you!?" Neither Dodge, nor Sanji, had time to react as there was a flash. They blinked slowly, both noticing the blade held at the man's throat at the same time. "And what do you want?" Zoro's eyes flicked to Sanji, scanning him as if searching for any new injuries. Satisfied, he slowly pulled his sword away.

The older man held his hands up, visible quaking. "I-I'm not meanin' any harm," he promised, forcing the most innocent smile he could muster. "Like I told yer friend there, my trap was set off, so I was just checkin' to see what did it."

That did little to nothing to calm the swordsman. "Trap?" he asked. "So, this is your fault then?"

"Hey, dumbass," Sanji muttered, sticking another cigarette between his teeth. "Calm down will ya, he's not our enemy. We were just...an inconvenience," he shrugged.

"As I was sayin'," Dodge continued, quieter. "My place ain't too far from here. If you guys are needin' a place to rest, I don't mind. It's the least I could do after all. Maybe you can get your injuries better taken care of. I have some medical supplies." Everything in Zoro was wanting to refuse, but remembering what Sanji's leg had looked like...he needed something. He needed it to be actually cleaned before it got infected.

Unwillingly, Zoro sheathed his weapon and went to stand next to the blond. "Fine, but you're staying at least ten feet ahead of us at all times, and you are not to lay a finger on him, got it?

"Zoro, what the hell has gotte-"

"Got it!?"

The man chuckled nervously. "No worries, I'm jus' offerin' a warm place to sleep, maybe a hot meal, and some proper care. I ain't got nothin' else up my sleeve. No tricks. But, I can understand the mistrust, it's a good trait to have, I s'pose."

Zoro nodded. "You ready?" he asked, crouching next to the blond. He tried to heft Sanji up like last time, but now awake, the cook was having none of it.

"I still have one working leg," he declared and settled for having one arm draped over the swordsman's shoulders. Hobbling along was by no means easy or pain-free, but he still had some of his dignity he wished to retain. He didn't want to admit it, but Zoro was supporting the majority of his weight as they trudged on. As promised, Dodge stayed a good distance from them, only looking back occasionally to make sure they didn't get left behind. Though, every time he glanced at them, they were falling farther and farther behind.

"It's not too much more to go," he assured, looking back again to see the blond practically being dragged. He was leaning entirely into the other man, a dazed look in his eye. The other's own face was drawn in pain, though he did a much better job of hiding it.

Zoro didn't know how long they were walking. Could have been a few minutes, or it could have been up to an hour. It was really impossible to tell when the only thing he was focused on was Sanji's slowly declining state. His breaths were more labored than they had been and his head was almost resting completely on his shoulder. If Zoro had to guess, he'd say he was on the verge of passing out again.

"You with me?" the swordsman whispered, leaning to where he could mutter it straight into the man's ear.

Sanji jolted against him, gasping with the action. "Mmmhmm."

"Try to hold on for just a little bit more if you can, alright?" Zoro readjusted the blond when he felt him slipping, earning another whimper.

It was at the point where every few steps had the chef nearly tripping. It was only a matter of time before he pulled them both down. All he could do was to try his best to keep the both of them upright, which was putting an uncomfortable amount of strain on his bad arm. It was becoming a struggle. He was tempted to just lift the cook up regardless of what he wanted; it would have saved them both a lot of hassle.

Fortunately, it didn't have to come to that as Dodge slowed to a stop. "Well, there it is. It ain't much, but it's home, I s'pose. You two make yourself comfortable and I'll get the fire started."

Zoro took a few more moments to look the place over. It didn't appear to be sketchy, just a normal hut in the middle of nowhere. He heaved a heavy sigh. "Alright, let's get you inside and taken care of," he said quietly to Sanji, hoisting him up one more time before heading towards the cabin.


	2. Back in (Mostly) One Piece

Zoro sat in the chair across from Sanji, the latter had his leg propped on the swordsman's lap. The blond was leaned back, still fighting against unconsciousness, just barely coming out victorious. He blinked sluggishly, never allowing his eyes to drift from the other. Meanwhile, their host was busy tending a fire, stirring the pot that hung over it.

Sanji's leg was finally cleaned and bound with actual bandages. He was also able to take something for the pain, Zoro as well.

The effects of the herbs coupled with blood loss had the chef fighting sleep. His head dipped every few seconds, eyes fluttering in an attempt to stay awake. But it was a losing battle. Zoro watched every second in pure amusement.

"You know, you can go to sleep if you want. We're probably going to be staying here through the night."

"M'not that tired," Sanji replied, voice sluggish from a stifled yawn. He straightened up and forced his eyes open, but not without having to blink a few times to get them to cooperate.

They both looked over when Dodge hummed lowly with satisfaction. "Food will be ready in no time," he announced. "I figured once you two had a bit of it, you can use my bed and get some rest before mornin'. From the looks of it, you both could do with it." He sat down in the last remaining chair with a heavy sigh. "I know you don't trust me, and I ain't blamin' ya for that. But, ya both look exhausted."

Zoro just nodded once. He wasn't going to deny that - he was sure it was written all over their faces. He could feel the bags under his eyes and he could plainly see them under the blond's. The swordsman held back a deep yawn of his own. "We appreciate it," he muttered. "But I'd prefer not sleeping in unfamiliar territory."

To his surprise, Sanji was still awake enough to snort. "That'd be the first."

Zoro rolled his eyes. "Shut your mouth before you waste what little energy you have left. And with the way you're dozing off over there, you have no room to talk."

Something was muttered in response, but it was too quiet for him to make out. He had no doubt it was some sort of insult though. It was muffled as the man finally let a deep yawn escape him. Shaking his head with a sigh, the swordsman got to his feet and with some effort, helped the cook move from the chair to the bed. The fact that there was barely so much as a peep of complaint out of him spoke volumes of how worn he was.

It wasn't long before he was out and dead to the world, a matter of seconds, really. Zoro perched himself next to him on the edge of the bed, and didn't move so much of an inch until Dodge announced the stew was ready. The swordsman looked back to Sanji, debating waking him. He was actually sleeping peacefully and he knew the man desperately needed it. With a deep breath, he chose to leave him be. He could just eat when he woke up. Disturbing his slumber would have just felt almost cruel.

The other two finished their bowls in silence. Only the crackling of the fire and the light snores of the blond kept it from being utterly quiet.

Once finished, Dodge cleaned up, moving about the small area as quietly as he could. During all of this, Sanji hadn't twitched even once. Even halfway through the night, as long as Zoro sat there, the blond stayed asleep.

"You're that worried about him, huh?" the elderly man finally asked, breaking the long silence.

The swordsman perked up, feeling his face heat a small amount. "What? No, don't get the wrong idea. It would just be an inconvenience if I didn't get the idiot back to the ship alive."

He hated the sly grin that tugged at the other man's lips with that. "Coulda fooled me," he chuckled lightly. "I thought for sure you were 'bout to stab me through with that sword out there. Seems you were awfully protective and I got a little too close for your likin'."

"I don't trust strangers," Zoro answered flatly.

Dodge hummed. "Despite bein' injured yourself, you still rushed to his side without a moment's hesitation."

Zoro narrowed his eyes and bit his bottom lip. "So, why are _you_ out here all by yourself?" he asked, shoulders tense.

"What can I say, I'm not fond of living in groups. Prefer the peace an' quiet." His eyes flicked from Zoro to Sanji, taking in the way the former never left his spot. In fact, the way he was sitting reminded him of that of a guard dog. "You mentioned a ship?" he asked after a moment. "So, are there more of you out there then?"

The swordsman stiffened at the shift in tone. "Yeah, there's a ship, the rest of our crew. They're waiting on us." He made a move to get up. "In fact, I'm sure we've kept them waiting long enough."

"Hold up now, I already said you fellas can stay the night. There's no rush, and I'm sure they won't mind waitin' 'til mornin'." He gestured with his hands for Zoro to sit back down. "I didn't mean nothin' by it, jus' hafta be cautious out 'ere, ya'know?" Slowly, the younger man eased back down, but the distrust never left his gaze. "Trust me, I don't want any trouble more than you do."

Zoro nodded once, firmly, but he remained on edge.

He didn't like the idea of staying here, but there was the constant worry of getting caught in another trap in the back of his mind. Not to mention, Sanji was barely able to stay conscious when they were coming here. Taking a deep breath, Zoro slowly released it and prepared himself for a long, sleepless night. Through the lightless hours, he never moved from his spot and never let his attention stray from the other man. Not even when he fell asleep in his chair. The swordsman stayed awake through it all, and only allowed himself to relax when rays finally shone through the curtains.

Slowly, Dodge stirred with a groan, rubbing the back of his neck. It took a moment for him to finally come around. And, seeing as it was finally morning, Zoro decided perhaps it was time to wake Sanji up.

"Hey," he mumbled, prodding the blond's shoulder. "Wake up, you've been asleep for like twelve hours, you lazy ass."

Sanji's brow furrowed and he cleared his throat as the discomfort slowly found its way back to him. His breath caught and his fingers curled into the sheets. "Fuck…" he mumbled, cracking an eye open. His hazy gaze went from Zoro to the rest of the room as familiarity flowed back into his mind. "How long was I asleep?" he asked, voice raspy from lack of use.

The swordsman helped sit up. "Long enough."

Once upright, the chef's hand was reaching for his leg, hovering just above the knee. Zoro was tempted to ask Dodge for more of those pain meds, but he'd prefer if Sanji were fully awake for when they leave.

"You still need to eat something," he reminded, not forgetting for a single second. "I'm not having you pass out from lack of energy and then having to haul you around." Even though he was already sort of doing that, but that wasn't the point. "And before you complain, you're not getting a choice in the matter, I will leave your ass here until you have something if I have to because you sure as hell aren't going anywhere on your own."

The blond held up a hand. "Alright, alright, I get it already. I got it the first time." He straightened up a little more and rubbed at his eye. He was still exhausted, but he fought against his body's pull and accepted a still slightly warm bowl.

His low appetite was clear by just how long it took him to finish the small amount there was. Each bite was tentative and cautious. Zoro had to guess it was the pain making him wary of consuming anything, which was understandable enough. He was just glad he actually finished it without any complaint.

"If you two want, I can help y'all get back you your ship. Make sure you don't get in anymore trouble along the way. I remember where all of the traps are, after all, so I'll lead you guys around them."

Zoro carefully helped Sanji up, again taking the majority of his weight. Now that his arm was better secure, the pull on it wasn't nearly as bad as it was the night before. Supporting the blond was no longer adding unnecessary strain on himself. Now he just hoped that they would make it back quickly. From the looks of it, the man wasn't up for covering long distances, or any distances for that matter. Sanji was putting up a strong front, but he could see the wear in his eyes and could feel the slight tremble as he struggled to hold his own.

"You good?" Zoro whispered.

Sanji nodded, jaw tight. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a couple of seconds before slowly blowing back out. "Yup. M'fine." He's had worse than this.

The first hour of walking went fairly smoothly with only a couple of stumbles. Both of which the cook was able to right himself quickly enough. It wasn't until the second hour that he started to slow his pace and began depending more on Zoro to keep him upright. He was out of breath and the pain was catching up to him. The lines of distress were enough to figure that much out.

"It's not too much farther," Dodge assured from a few feet ahead. "Another half an hour at the most an' we'll be at the shore."

Keeping that in mind, Sanji pushed on, using his remaining energy to focus on just moving forward. Zoro had to smile to himself as some of the weight was lifted away from him and the blond's eyes shone with new determination.

Just as the elderly man had promised, it wasn't too much longer before they could hear the crashing of waves and smell the scent of salt. "Almost there," Zoro promised. "Try to keep it up for a few more minutes." Even he was starting to feel the pulls of his body's need for rest. He could only imagine how it was for Sanji by now. By the time they reached the edge of the forest, Dodge stopped and stepped to the side.

"Well, this' as far as I go," he sighed. "You boys be careful, and sorry again about the, uh, ya'know."

Zoro hummed in understanding. "Thanks," he breathed out, hefting Sanji up when he felt him start to slip a little. He earned himself a little hiss - of either pain or annoyance, he couldn't tell which. He just hated they were going back empty handed, all this for nothing. Oh well, he supposed it was enough they were going back alive. One look at Sanji and he was thankful they weren't hurt more than they were.

"Appreciate it," the blond added curtly. He shifted, trying to stand more on his own, much to Zoro's irritation.

Dodge waved one last time. "Don't wanna see you fellas 'round here again, ya'here?" he said with a light chuckle before turned back towards the forest. The other two watched for only a few seconds. Their attention was pulled away by,

"Zoro! Sanji!"

The two shared a heavy breath as they looked over their shoulders to see their captain, leaning over the railing, beaming. The swordsman had to hold up a hand to keep Luffy from springing over. He wasn't sure either of them could handle the impact right now.

Together, with the help of Nami and Ussop, both of them were able to get on board without much issue. In a matter of seconds, their doctor was looking them over. His face was a constant mask of both anger and concern as he checked leg and arm. "What did you two do!?" he asked as he removed the bindings from the blond's leg. "I'm going to have to set this properly. Luckily it's a clean enough of a break," he sighed.

"Lucky me," Sanji muttered, rolling his eyes. But the bite was lacking from his tone.

As Chopper went to start taking a closer look at Zoro, the man waved him away. "He's worse off," he muttered. "Take care of him first."

For once, the reindeer didn't pester, knowing those words to be true based on the amount of dried blood still left on the blond's leg. Zoro stepped to the side, getting out of the way while Chopper changed to his human form and carried Sanji away. The latter allowed it to happen, not so much as a whimper out of the man.

The swordsman wandered back towards the rail of the ship and leaned against it, propping his bad arm on top. He stared out into the forest, scanning the area. He was pretty sure he could still see some light rustling as Dodge moved about, and he could only assume the man stuck by to make sure they actually made it all the way. He waved his good hand, hoping it was seen before the movement died down.

He didn't know how long he stayed there, must have been a couple hours at the least. It had to have been a while because next thing he knew the ship was moving. It was only a few minutes more until a sound grabbed his attention: tapping. It moved in a pattern, only broken up by light 'thumps'.

Zoro glanced over when the noise stopped next to him and he caught the recognizable shade of gold, ruffled.

"You're next," Sanji announced, shifting one crutch to the other hand to free up his left hand. Just as expected, he fished out a cigarette and placed it between his lips.

"Should you really be moving around?"

The chef shrugged. "There's only one bed and you still need to be checked out. And I slept enough last night. I'm wide awake…"

Zoro snorted. "Really? What the hell did Chopper give you? You could barely keep your eyes open last I saw you." He looked over, noticing the dark circles under his eyes and the still too pale skin. "You still look like you're ready to keel over." He pushed himself away with a grunt as his arm was jostled. He turned to head towards their quarters.

"Wait."

The swordsman paused without turning around. "What?"

He stiffened, caught off guard. For a few seconds the arms that were wrapped around him didn't register. "Thanks," he heard muffled against the back of his shoulder.

"For?"

Zoro felt another shrug. "Didn't know you could be so protective," Sanji mumbled. "So…" he sighed heavily, "thanks for helping me out back there. But, if you tell anyone I had to ride your shoulders...you're dead."

He couldn't help but chuckle at that. Like he would even tell anyone about that, it wasn't his proudest moment either. Shaking his head, Zoro spun on the spot, reaching out to grab one of Sanji's upper arms before he had the chance to topple over. Once the blond had his balance, he moved his hand from the man's arm to his chin and lifted it ever so slightly. His mouth fell open, causing his smoke to hit the deck, which was instantly stepped on and snuffed out by the other.

Sanji's one visible eye widened as soon as he realized what was happening, but the feel of the larger man's lips against his own still came as a small shock. He felt firm fingers travel around to the back of his head and interlock with his hair as he was pulled in closer. There was nothing left to do other than close his eyes and return the kiss.

Slowly, Zoro finally pulled away, his eyes reflecting the same surprise the other was feeling. He blinked a couple of times and carefully removed his hand from the other's hair. "Dunno what came over me," he muttered.

Just as confused, the chef shook his head. "N-No...it's fine." Sanji took a step back, balancing on his good leg. "But...Chopper is still waiting on you. You probably should go there before he comes after you."

The swordsman breathed out with a small roll of his eyes. "Yeah." As he went to turn around, he paused one more time. "And no need to thank me. I was just doing what was natural. I'm sure you would have done the same." He offered Sanji one last soft smile as he turned around, leaving the blond to himself.

With a shuddering breath, the blond turned back around, feeling somewhat light-headed all of a sudden. Hopping over to the railing, he plucked his crutches back in his left hand as he pressed his back against the wood. His free hand raised to touch his lips, which still tingled a small amount.

"Dumbass," he muttered, taking another cigarette from his pocket.


End file.
